All Forum Posts by: Mark Horton II

Hello, so I started a STR property management company and we have grown. We are looking to buy bulk supplies. We should be managing around 50 very shortly. Does anyone have a recommend place to buy bulk supplies like cleaning and toiletries supplies? Thank you very much for any info!!!

@Melanie Stephens This is a great topic and I am going to break it up in different categories:

First, I am a huge fan of the BRRRRnB so rehabbing the house properly is key for me.  Lessons learned for rehabbing a home: 1. Purchase the nice faux wood blinds especially if you allow pets.  The faux wood doesn't bend and look like garbage when dogs run to the windows, Also, it is easier for cleaners to wipe down and they don't have to worry about bending or snapping them.  Second, buy the taller toilets over the shorter toilets.  The taller toilets are a little bit more expensive but well worth it.  Two biggest reasons for the taller toiles is people who have some extra baggage don't flop on them cracking the seal and it is also easier for people to squat up and get off the toilet.  3.  Do as much as you can to help be energy efficient.  Proper installation in crawl space and attic and around windows.  Keep those utilities bills down.  

Insurance: Make sure you get property insurance that specifies or is okay with STRs. Some vacation rental insurance may not cover STR because of the state you live in may have a grey area for STR and they don't meet the same standard as a traditional leased vacation rental home. Just be sure an ask.

Documentation.  Create a digital filing cabinet of all the paperwork and repairs that have been done.  Also, cleaners that send pictures after the their cleans and have receipts for things that you have purchased.  This makes it a little easier when dealing with Airbnb and if there was damages to your property.  The receipts are important to show the value of an object that has been damaged.  

CLEANERS. This is the hardest thing to manage in my book. But first ad foremost; cleaners that understand STR and the turn around. Educate them on the process if their are damages so they know what info to send you immediately; especially if you have guests coming. Cleaners who are willing to adapt to the software you use is so valuable as well. We are local STR managers, so we are boots on the ground but having a cleaning company that can help the process of reporting damages can be great.

I can talk about a ton of topics and would love to answer any other questions someone may have!!

@Alicia Marks It was a wholesaler I knew, it was a rare deal; he was deployed and had issues closing and we wanted to get to work quickly on it, so we came up with that solution.  

BRRRRnB In Fayetteville, NC. One of the wholesalers that I had used in the past contacted me and said she had a deal in the Historical Area near downtown Fayetteville. I went and walked the property and needed everything from electrical to new hvac to plumbing. It was a small 2/1. It was purchased by owner financing for 58k which included the wholesaler fee. It took about 3 and half months of rehab, with holding costs and rehab I spent just under 40k. Once it was done, We spent about another 8k in preparing it to be and STR. All in we spent about 106k and its arv was 155k!!!! The location was amazing and since them it sits in a great area has about 39 reviews all but one was a 5 star review. It profits a good amount each month on top of us getting our money back. It has been a great investment.

@James Rippeon sent!

@Grant Thompson absolutely. One of the first lessons was having multiple people that can do the same job. Having more then one handy man or electrician. Lawn care makes a difference. Presentation when guests arrive helps make the property look better and sets the tone of the visit. Another big one is have a plan for when you want a weekend off or travel that will maintain your standards. Also, create lists of all the things in your property and the cleaners should have that as well.

Hello, I hope everyone is doing great! Just over a year ago my wife and I started our own STR management company. We started off managing two properties that I owned. We wanted to flush out our systems before we brought in clients to manage. After we developed our systems we started brining in clients. As we started to grow we had to make a huge decision. We could only manage about 10 properties or grow big enough to hire employees because in the middle of June I deployed for 6 months. I needed to grow my business big enough so that my wife could have employees to help her grow while I was gone. Oh also, we had our first kid in April. We had a lot going on. From Jan to June we built up our business and not only did we hit the number of properties we needed but we exceeded it. We launched our own direct booking website, we have two employees, my wife left her full tie job to work for our company and we have a bookkeeper on staff. We are still growing and fighting to keep our super host status as we add more and more properties. It was a lot of lessons learned and definitely mistakes where made but we grew and always trying to improve our business is why I believe we grew so fast!!

@Sharnece Holmes Fayetteville is a great market to invest in. There is a lot of knowledgeable people in that market. I know there are a few episodes about Fayetteville. You should give them a listen.

Awesome deal.  I am glad I can help.  Thank you for letting us manage your property!!!

@Marc Estepa good morning Marc, I am a local investor as well as a real estate agent. There is a property manager that I highly recommend. He is local and has a great staff. Send me a message and I can definitely help you. I recommend this manager and he also manages my properties.